


Photoshoots

by StrictlyFromCorn (orphan_account)



Series: Fred Astaire x Ginger Rogers [4]
Category: Actor RPF, Astaire/Rogers RPF, Classic Hollywood - Fandom, Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers Movies
Genre: F/M, Fred Astaire x Ginger Rogers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-06
Updated: 2013-11-06
Packaged: 2017-12-31 15:40:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1033410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/StrictlyFromCorn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dance to some old tunes for a photoshoot for their reunion film, The Barkleys of Broadway (1949). Along the way, they realize something very important about the two of them. Fred/Ginger. Rated T for implied... you know.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Photoshoots

_Photoshoots, photoshoots, photoshoots._

Fred Astaire didn't have a particular penchant for them, but in the business of Hollywood, they had to get done. And since he was a dancer, most of the photos involved him, well, dancing. It was hard work sometimes. They had to do it for hours and hours before there were any good photos. And _then_ the studio had to say whether they were satisfactory or not.

But he had one comfort in the task that was in front of him. He was going to dance with Ginger Rogers again, after ten years. They were the hottest dancing couple in Hollywood in the thirties, the most important stars at RKO Studios. And Fred could honestly say that he was thrilled to work together with her. Out of all the dancing partners he had worked with, she was probably the only one who didn't have that moment where she cried for no reason whatsoever. Eleanor Powell was like that, too, but he only worked with her on one film. They were so polite to each other they could hardly dance.

It was a whole different affair with Ginger, of course. When you did nine films - and this was the tenth - with someone, you got to know them pretty well. Fred wondered how it would be to hold her in his arms again, and rehearse with her and... kiss her. Yes, kiss her. Fans started to suspect that his wife inserted a clause in his contract that prevented him from kissing Ginger. Since they were playing a married couple in the film (oh, wouldn't some people like to see that come true?), he figured that he would probably have to kiss her. More than once. Different contract, different studio, but the same Fred and Ginger. And that was all that really mattered.

 _Ah, don't talk rot._ He told himself as the car pulled up outside the empty sound stage. Predictably, he was dressed in white tie and tails, and for a brief moment, Fred sincerely hoped there wouldn't be a rehashing of the 'feathers' incident. At least a photoshoot wouldn't be so bad, compared to an actual song and dance number. Still, he had no desire whatsoever to experience the feeling of feathers wreaking havoc on his respiratory system again.

"Hiya, Mr. Astaire." The photographer greeted him as he walked into the room. The dancer responded with a smile and a nod, as he started looking at the records near the gramophone. "They Can't Take That Away From Me", "Cheek to Cheek", "Night and Day", well, someone obviously wanted to invoke old memories. He was about to say something to the effect of "who picked these?" when his gaze fell on the person in the doorway.

There she was. Ginger Rogers, looking as stunning as ever. There were thankfully no feathers on her dress, but it was beautiful. With a broad grin, Fred was about to walk over and give her an enthusiastic greeting, but something stopped him in his tracks. He felt his heart rate pick up at once, and he was almost giddy with excitement at her arrival, just like a little child.

Without a word, Ginger walked over to her dancing partner, and put her arm around him, as an invitation to dance. The photographer needed no directions to get his equipment ready, and he picked out one of the records, the one from _The Gay Divorcee_ , and Cole Porter's music filled the empty sound stage. Fred, although taken by surprise, assumed the familiar dancing position with her.

* * *

_Night and day, you are the one_

_Only you beneath the moon and under the sun_

_Whether near to me or far,_

_it's no matter darling, where you are -I think of you._

* * *

At first, they stepped into a simple waltz, mindful of the fact that they were being photographed. _Smile, smile, smile._ Fred repeated to himself. He could feel that Ginger was a little hesitant about dancing with him after all that time, and he had to remind himself to loosen up, too. The thing about photoshoots was that they couldn't talk, and the two dancers often had to convey their thoughts through their expressions. And through their years at RKO, they had gotten pretty good at it.

 _Hello, Feathers._ He took the risk of mouthing the words, as he guided her into a spin, turning away from the camera. She responded with a genuine smile that wasn't for the camera - he knew it by the look in her eyes. Feeling more confident, Fred started to guide her in a more elaborate routine with a few spins thrown in. As he expected, her dress twirled beautifully, and he loved the way it looked.

He would have lifted her but that only photographed well sometimes. Instead, he opted to wait for a little while longer, till the two of them got comfortable dancing with each other after ten whole years. A solid decade was a long time, but Fred was determined not to let that time lapse get in the way of their comfort in dancing with each other.

 _How've you been?_ He mouthed again, the photoshoot playing second fiddle to his attempt to catch up with Ginger. He welcomed that familiar feeling that came from dancing with her again. The feeling which was fostered from hours upon hours of rehearsals together. It was an intimate bond that only the two dancers themselves understood.

 _Oh, Freddie, you'll ruin the photoshoot!_ Ginger mouthed back, although she didn't seem too upset about it, considering the way she laughed out loud at his mischevious grin. Dancing with him was so joyful, so enjoyable - she simply couldn't express the feeling in words.

Instead of replying, Fred simply twirled her around with a broad grin, as the record stopped and the photographer (who had wisely set near the cameras so that he could reach it easily) changed the song.

* * *

_Heaven, I'm in heaven_

_And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak_

_And I seem to find the happiness I seek_

_When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek._

* * *

The familiar number from _Top Hat_. The couple both laughed out loud all of a sudden, remembering the whole hullabaloo over Ginger's dress and the way the feathers floated off and got all over the place. Looking back on the whole incident with dispassion, Fred had to admit, the first time they tried filming that sequence, they must have looked really silly.

And the way he and Hermes Pan, his best friend and co-choreographer, had placated Ginger with a parody of the original song, after Fred lost his temper and yelled at her. Those were all "good old times" now, and it was something of Hollywood legend. It was hard to believe that those incidents had taken place a full 14 years ago.

The two of them kept dancing, with that famous elegance and grace that they were both so well-known for. And then, slowly, Fred moved into that position, same as they had done from the "Cheek to Cheek" number, slowing the speed of their dance and holding her a little closer. Ginger followed without saying anything, pressing her cheek against his.

The cameraman was about to say something to the effect of not being able to see their faces properly, but he was wise enough to keep his mouth shut and watched as the two of them seemed to intimately recall all their fun times together without even saying a word.

The music's tempo picked up, and Fred started dancing a little faster, leading the two of them with confidence. The uneasiness the two of them had felt not five minutes ago had melted away instantly with the closeness of being cheek to cheek, and it was hard for him to even imagine that he could be ill at ease while dancing with Ginger. His favorite partner.

 _Feathers - I hate feathers,_ He mouthed along some of the twisted lyrics, much to her amusement. _And I hate them so that I can hardly speak._ After all, Fred was the one who was worrying about her dress before she had walked in. Once bitten, twice shy, that's what they said. And as the two of them were dancing, in much closer quarters than before, the record stopped and the photographer changed the record again.

* * *

_Though, I'm left without a penny,_

_the wolf was discreet; he left me my feet,_

_And so, I put them down on anything but_

_The la belle, la perfectly swell romance,_

_Never gonna dance, never gonna dance, only gonna love_

* * *

The two dancers almost laughed out loud and almost groaned at the same time. They both clearly remembered the effort that they went through to film the dance, and they had to do it forty-seven times in order to get it right. Ginger's feet were bleeding at the end of it all, and Fred had taken care of her. Well, at least it paid off. The critics and moviegoers alike both _loved_ that dance.

 _Let's hope nothing like that happens in this film!_ Ginger mouthed the words to her partner as the two of them glided across the floor, forgetting all about why they were there in the first place.  She had to admit that work was pretty important, but for the moment, she just let all her commitments go. To her, she was in another place when she danced with him.

 _I guess they'd better have better cameras this time._ Fred mouthed back, referring to the numerous camera problems they had run into when filming that dance. The smile on his face wasn't for the camera - it was for the fact that he was in the company of Feathers, as he called her.

 _Fred, I'm hungry._ She suddenly mouthed back, as Fred guided her into an elaborate spin, like how they had done in _Swing Time._ The expression on his face - that of mingled surprise and amusement, almost made her laugh again.

 _I'd rather you dance on an empty stomach than a full stomach._ He recovered himself quickly and shot back a quick comment. The smile - or rather, grin, by this point - had returned to his face. He loved the easy banter that he could share with Ginger, and he hated all those rumors that they were fighting. They never exchanged a cross word, _ever._ The gossip columnists could talk all they wanted, but they certainly wouldn't make those rumors true.

 _Oh, Freddie, do you remember those times when we used to go to that little diner, after we worked for hours on rehearsals? We've got to do that again._ Ginger looked upon those times with fondness, and she loved it. There were no crowds, no journalists shouting, "Astaire and Rogers!", nothing. Just a small diner, and some homemade food. She always teased Fred about having soup and nothing else, but he did love the apple pie.

 _Those were swell times._ He agreed with a nod, and the empty sound stage was plunged into silence again as the record stopped. He very nearly wanted to go across the room and change it himself, before he realized that the photographer was still in the room.

* * *

_The way your smile just beams_

_The way you sing off-key_

_The way you haunt my dreams,_

_No, no, they can't take that away from me_

* * *

_Ya know, we should have danced to this song in that film._ Fred commented all of a sudden, still mouthing the words. He didn't know why he did that; after all, it wouldn't quite ruin the photo, but he was mindful of the photographer's presence now that he had been reminded of it.

 _Well, we could, in this film._ Ginger suddenly suggested, looking at her partner with a sudden brightness. She didn't see any reason why they couldn't do that, and after all, George Gershwin was pretty upset that they just sang it and didn't dance it.

"Say... we could!" He burst out, seeing no hurdles in the path either. His outburst was met with a strange look from the cameraman, which made the dancing star rather self-concious. "Uh, say, could you go out and call my friend Pan for me? Hermes Pan. You know who he is, right?" Fred addressed him, almost bursting with excitement at the idea of being able to dance to that song. He had regretted it somewhat over the course of the past 12 years.

"Yeah, of course I do!" The photographer replied eagerly, glad at the fact that he had been acknowledged. "I'll go find him right away!" With that, he dashed out of the room, leaving the door open in his jubilation.

"I wonder what happened to closing the door after leaving a sound stage." Fred remarked drily as he walked over to the entrance and shut the door. He hesitated there for a minute, his hands at his sides, before he drew in his breath and locked it, as well.

"What are you afraid of, Fred?" Ginger asked teasingly, just happy to be able to talk out loud again, like a normal person. "Afraid that Pan's gonna say no?" She watched him as he made his way back towards her, wondering why he had waited so long at the door.

"I just don't want anyone to disturb us." Fred replied, trying to hint at what he was going to initiate. "I think it's swell to work with you again." As he spoke, he took her by the hand and spinned her around once more. Ginger, not having expected it, but enjoying it nonetheless, giggled, much like the one time they danced in _Roberta_.

"I think it's swell t-" She was cut off as Fred held her close to himself and suddenly pressed his lips against hers. Was it a kiss? Yes, it was. Something unexpected, for sure. There had been all that anger among fans of theirs that they never kissed on-screen. Well, if only those people who had complained were there to witness that kiss. The Hays Code wouldn't have passed it, that was for sure.

"Ginger, I... I just-" Fred pulled away from her for a minute, a little bit breathless. Ginger didn't quite know how he "made love", so to speak. He always did things so differently from the rest of the world, and that was why she loved him. He was so unique, so detached from society's ways. He was _amazing_. Not just amazing - she was besotted with him. The realization hit her suddenly, like an epiphany. All those hours of dancing together, and working together had given rise to something. "I'm sorry if you don't feel the same way." Fred was staring at her like a startled animal, much like the times they had fallen on top of each other while rehearsing dances.

"Oh, Fred, it's the most wonderful thing!" Ginger burst out, kissing him again. She felt his hand make its way onto her cheek, and she figured that that "on-screen chemistry" the critics talked about wasn't entirely just something people imagined. After all, she had thought that the two of them were imagining their feelings towards each other. And she had been proved wrong.

And she didn't mind being wrong, for once in her life.


End file.
